1. Field of the Present Invention
The present invention relates in general to an input apparatus, and more particularly to a keyboard module for a handheld electronic apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
High efficiency and convenience are what people are seeking mostly nowadays. Handheld electronic apparatus such as Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) and smart phone becomes essential item in briefcase for businessmen.
The handheld electronic apparatus enables users to access their personal address book and schedule for meetings and appointments. Moreover, with the aid of wireless connection network, users could quickly and freely access the network to obtain the latest news and other information.
In order to enable the user of the handheld electronic apparatus to easily manipulate the apparatus and write text messages, the handheld electronic apparatus is generally equipped with a keyboard module including a navigator button, four application buttons and a Qwerty keyboard.
FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a conventional keyboard module 100, which mainly includes a carrier device such as a printed circuit board 102, a Qwerty keyboard 104, a navigator button 106, and four application buttons 108. The keyboard 104 and the buttons 106, 108 are mounted on the printed circuit board 102. The Qwerty keyboard 104 is used for enabling the user to conveniently input a text message to the apparatus. The application buttons 108 are used for enabling the user to directly access specific application software of the apparatus, which usually is PIM (personal information management) software, like calendar, schedule, contact and e-mail. The navigator button 106 is used for enabling the user to quickly move a cursor on a display of the apparatus, or scroll vertically and horizontally a screen on the display of the apparatus.
The navigator button 106 is located between the application buttons 108, and the Qwerty keyboard 102 is located below the navigator button 106 and the application buttons 108.
Referring to FIGS. 2A and 2B, FIG. 2A is a perspective view of a conventional PDA and FIG. 2B is a top plain view of FIG. 2A. The conventional PDA 210 includes a housing 212. An LCD display 214 is mounted in an upper portion of the housing 212. A keyboard module (not labeled) is mounted in a lower portion of the housing 212. The keyboard module includes a navigator button 206 and four application buttons 208 just below the LCD display 214. A Qwerty keyboard 204 is located below the navigator button 206 and the application buttons 208. The navigator button 206 is located between the application buttons 208 so that two application buttons are located at a lateral side of the navigator button while the other two application buttons are located at an opposite lateral side of the navigator button 206.
In general, the Qwerty keyboard 204, navigator button 206 and application buttons 208 are mounted on a circuit board (not shown) in the housing 212. The buttons 206, 208 and keys of the keyboard 204 each have an upper portion protruding upwardly beyond the housing 212 so that the user can user his thumbs to depress the keys of the keyboard 204 and buttons 206, 208 to enter required function and information.
Easy usage and carriage are the basic principle and requirements of the design of the PDA 210. Designs with over-size and over-weight go against the principles of being light, thin, short and small. The conventional keyboard module of the PDA 210 mentioned above is actually big in size. Therefore, using the conventional keyboard module in the PDA 210 makes it difficult to reduce the size of the PDA 210, which results in the inconvenience in usage and carriage for the user.